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Heavy-bottomed cooking pot
Steady heat helps rice, dal and slow-simmered sauces cook evenly without catching on the base.
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Vegan Masala Recipe
Vegan Kheer (Indian Rice Pudding)
Vegan kheer slowly cooks rice with oat milk, cardamom and saffron until creamy and fragrant. Nuts add texture to this quiet, comforting pudding, which is lovely warm or chilled.
Recipe by Craig LogueHow our recipes are created
105 minPrep: 60 minCook: 45 minServes 8IndianVegan
Almond kheercreamyIndian rice puddingsweetVegan kheer
From the kitchen
What to expect
This kheer keeps a gentle, creamy body from oat milk and slow-cooked basmati rice. Cardamom, saffron and raisins give it the familiar finish many families look for in a rice pudding.
Serving idea
Best served simply
Serve in small bowls, chilled or slightly cool, with extra sliced almonds on top.
Useful equipment
Tools that make this recipe easier
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Vegan Masala recommends
Fine-mesh sieve
Handy for rinsing rice and lentils thoroughly and draining them without losing smaller grains.
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Cook the recipe
Method
- 1
Soak ½ cup raw basmati rice in a bowl with enough water to cover it by 2 to 3 inches for 1 hour. Drain well and keep the rice as it is, without rinsing away the starch.
- 2
Put 6 cups oat milk and the drained rice in a large saucepan. Cook over low to medium-low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until the rice is very soft and the milk starts to thicken.
- 3
Stir in ½ cup sugar and continue cooking for about 15 minutes, stirring often so the kheer does not catch on the bottom. The mixture should look creamier and slightly reduced.
- 4
Add ½ tsp ground cardamom, 2 tablespoons raisins, and 2 tablespoons sliced almonds. Cook for a few more minutes until the raisins plump a little and the rice looks swollen and tender.
- 5
Stir in a generous pinch of saffron and cook for 5 minutes more, letting the colour and aroma move through the pudding.
- 6
Take the pan off the heat and stir in ½ tsp vanilla extract. Cover the kheer and let it cool to room temperature before serving, so it settles to the right texture.
- 7
Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Gather everything first
Ingredients
- •½ cup raw basmati rice
- •6 cups oat milk
- •½ cup sugar (or substitute with date syrup, maple syrup, agave nectar, stevia, or erythritol)
- •½ tsp ground cardamom
- •2 tablespoons raisins
- •2 tablespoons sliced almonds (optional, or use pumpkin seeds instead)
- •A generous pinch of saffron
- •½ tsp vanilla extract
A few useful notes
Notes
- •Kheer thickens as it cools. If it becomes too firm, loosen it with a splash of oat milk while reheating on low heat.
- •Keep leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Stir before serving, since the rice settles and the surface may look thicker.
- •The sweetness can be adjusted to taste, especially if using date syrup or another liquid sweetener. Add it gradually and stop when the balance feels right.
- •For a little more texture at the table, top each bowl with extra almonds or pumpkin seeds just before serving.
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